Yes I would agree the solaris fixtures where not built that great but there are still very few other fixtures that promise better results. The AI are the better looking fixtures as far as quality goes but to me the module design lacks the style I prefer to see in a fixture for open top tanks and the warranty still suggests a lack of faith in the reliability of the product.
As for LED reliability and lifespan I would strongly disagree. Yes they have been around for a long time but they are new to the hobby and the environment they will be exposed to. They will run hotter and in high humidity and also be exposed to the salty corrosive atmosphere. This will impact the lifespan of the LEDs just like it does for all other types of lights we use. Metal Halides for example are rated for 5 years before a 30% drop in standard applications but over time we have discovered that they only last one year in the hobby application. A similar result will no doubt be discovered with LEDs over time. A friend of mine also pointed out the other day that a lot of cars these days run LED tail lights as manufactures made similar promises about long life and reliability but you still often see multiple burnt out LEDs in taillights on still fairly new vehicles. At least if a regular tail light burns out it's a simple and cheap fix while the LED style simply is not.
An LED by itself is no doubt a reliable light source, however combining multiple arrays into hundreds of LEDs greatly increases the chance of failure and the fix isn't the same as simply changing a bulb.
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